Traditionally, a lipstick pomade is positioned and secured within a dispenser by an elevator cup. The elevator cup provides a stable mounting surface for the pomade and permits the pomade to be raised and lowered within the dispenser for use and storage by the user. Generally, a friction fit between the pomade and an inner wall of the elevator cup is sufficient to hold the pomade securely within the elevator cup.
However, some pomades, particularly silicone-filled pomades with significant quantities of volatile components, do not seat securely in the elevator cup after extended periods of use. The trend in the cosmetics product market is towards "non-transferable" lipstick products. The new products are heavy, silicone filled lipsticks that do not transfer from the wearers lips, or leave residue, such as on coffee cups or clothing. These lipstick formulations have a significant quantity of volatile components in their formulations. As such, they must be kept enclosed in an airtight container when not in use or else they quickly dry out and shrink. Even when properly stored, a significant level of shrinkage may occur due to the volatile nature of the silicone compositions. Thus, the traditional friction fit used to secure the pomades within the elevator cup is inadequate for use with pomades containing the new compositions because when the pomades shrink over time, the friction fit is diminished and the pomade can become dislodged, potentially rendering the lipstick product useless.
Many current designs of elevator cups include ribs and spikes extending from locations within the elevator cup to increase the surface area in contact with the pomade, to better secure the pomade in the elevator cup. While each have differing degrees of effectiveness, most designs generally include ribs or spikes that extend into the pomade to maintain contact as the pomade shrinks away from the inner walls of the elevator cup. However, the present designs do not provide the necessary amount of friction to ensure the pomade stays in place in the elevator cup as it shrinks.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,560,727 to Vaupel attempts to address the problem by providing spring elements that are pressed into the pomade to create rear-engaging lugs through a cam action between cams located on the spring elements and a slotted tube located within the dispenser. A similar design is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,865,550 to Bouix wherein a tab is pressed into the pomade through a similar cam action between a cam surface located on the tab and a cam surface located on an inner sleeve. In Bouix, the tab mechanically locks into place upon penetration of the pomade through an interaction between the tab and the cup wall. Both of the above tabs require specialized designs and interactions between various components of the dispensers for proper penetration and engagement of the of the tabs into pomade, though, which complicates manufacturing and assembly of the dispensers.
What is desired, therefore, is an elevator cup with a means for securely holding pomades within the elevator cup upon shrinkage of the pomade, desirably, the means for securing the pomade is simple in design and operation.